Athletics

A big thank you as always to Mr. Lorcan Murphy for the Athletics notes.

Impressive Performances by CNS Athletes 2013/2014

Colaiste na Sceilge athletes have been turning in some very impressive performances in recent weeks.

Topping the list is our star Hammer Thrower Adam King who had two massive throws over 70 meters in the Kerry and Clare Championships respectively, while also winning the Munster Colleges title. Adam now heads for Azerbaijan where he competes in the European Youth Olympic Trials and where a top 10 finish will gain him selection for the World Youth Olympics being held in China in July.Unfortunately he will miss competing in the All-Ireland Colleges due to a clash with the European event. We wish him the very best of luck in his quest to bring further honour to CNS.

Another CNS athlete doing well is Cillian O’ Donovan. Cillian had a great win in the Kerry Senior Road Championship while also finishing 2nd in the Munster Colleges 5000m Track event, which qualifies him for the All-Ireland final in Tullamore on the 31st of May. Over his six years in CNS Cillian has won many athletic honours including being selected on National Teams on numerous occasions, while the highlight of his achievements was winning the All- Ireland Intermediate 3000m Title in 2012. We wish him the best of luck in his future athletic career as he heads into 3rd levelEducation in Sept.

The past year has also been a very successful one for Liam O’ Connell. Liam won County Titles over 800m and 3000m while also winning at Munster level over 1500m in both Indoor and Outdoor competitions. He also had good success at cross-country finishing 5th in Munster and qualifying for All-Ireland.

Lorraine Kelly showed great improvement throughout the year with the highlight of her achievements being winning the South Munster 800m Title along with an excellent 6th place in the cross-country.

The top performers at Junior Boys level were Oisin Moran who was an excellent 3rd in the South Munster Cross-Country while Jim Sugrue showed good promise in the Long Jump, winning both the County and South Munster Colleges Titles.

In the Cross-Country Team section the Junior Girls team took the top honours , winning Silver at south Munster level and bronze in the Munster final.

Team

Lorraine Kelly

Eimear O’ Donovan

Ellen O’ Sullivan

Aoibhin Collins

Leah O’ Sullivan

All-Ireland Cross-Country 2014

On Sat. last Mar. 8th Colaiste na Sceilge cross-country runners were competing in the All-Ireland Cross-Country Championships in Cork. Top individual performer was Liam O’Connell who was the 3rd Munster finisher in the Senior Boys event, while Oisin Moran and Eimear O’Donovan were both 7th Munster finishers in the Junior Boys and Girls events respectively. The Junior Girls team were 6th overall in the team section.
With the Cross-Country season now finished, attention will focus on Track & Field which will begin with the County Schools Championships at the end of April, followed by Munster and All-Ireland competitions.

Liam O’Connell wins Munster 1500m Title 2014

Well done to Liam O’Connell who recently won the Munster Indoor U-19 1500m Title in Nenagh. In 2013 Liam won both the Indoor and Outdoor U-18 titles.

Adam King Update

Adam Kings strength and conditioning work over the winter was interrupted by a groin injury. However he is now back in full training and looking forward to the upcoming 2014 Hammer Throwing season which begins in May and he will be hoping to match his brilliant 2013 performances when he won 14 out of 15 events.
In April Adam will be heading to Portugal for 5 days warm weather training and at the
end of May he will be competing in the European Trials in Azerbaijan for a place in the World Youth Olympics in China during July. The whole school community wish Adam the best of luck in his quest to bring further honours to Colaiste na Sceilge

Munster Schools Cross-Country 2014

Colaiste na Sceilge athletes turned in some fine performances at the recent Munster Schools Cross-Country Championships held in Cork.

In the Senior Boys race over 6000m Cillian O’Donovan and Liam O’Connell finished 5th and 7th respectively while in the Junior event over 3500m Oisin Moran finished an excellent 10th. All three individuals have now qualified for the All-Ireland at the same venue on March 8th.
In the Junior Girls event Eimear O’Donovan had a fine run to finish 10th and led her team to winning bronze medals and qualification for the All-Ireland.

Junior Girls Team

South Munster Colleges Cross Country Cork 24th January

Athletic Achievements 2013

Colaiste na Sceilge student Adam King has just completed an outstanding season in athletics, winning 14 of the 15 Hammer Throwing Events he competed in. His successes included winning Provincial, National and International Schools Titles along with winning the Celtic Games Title with a new championship best performance. He also set a new CBP when winning the Munster title. Competing in the European Youth Olympics in Holland was a great experience for Adam and 6th place against the cream of European Hammer Throwers was certainly a great achievement.

Another Colaiste na Sceilge student who had a very successful season was Liam o’Connell . Liam won the Munster Indoor and outdoor 1500m Titles while also finishing 2nd in the 3000m.

Despite a lot of injury setbacks throughout the season, Cillian o’Donovan still managed to win the Irish Mountain running Trial which gained him selection for the European Junior Championships in Marseille [France] where the conditions were extremely tough, with temperatures reaching in excess of 36 degrees on the very steep uphill run.

Niall O’ Shea and Laura O’Connor also won medals at the Kerry schoolsChampionships while Niall also qualified for the All-Ireland Schools Cross- Country in Belfast.

Recap of Adam King’s 2013 Hammer Throwing season

Dunboyne Winter Throws 2nd March 1st junior 62.09m

South Munster Schools, CIT 10th May 1st 63.37m

County Championship, Castleisland 12th May 1st 61m

Munster Schools, CIT 18th May 1st 58m

International Throws, Halle [Germany] 26th May – After travellingcompetition was cancelled due to weather conditions.

Irish Schools Championship, Tullamore 1st June 1st 63.60m

AAI Games, Dublin 9th June 1st 67.56m [ PB ]

Munster Championship, Templemore 16th June 1st 69.03m [PB] [CBP}

Darthmouth & Brown [US University] v University of Limerick

16th June [ Guest Competitor] 1st 67.71m

Tailteann Games, Tullamore 29th June 1st 66.98m

All-Ireland Championship, Tullamore 7th July 1st 62.07m

European Youth Olympics, Utrecht [Holland] 17th July 6th 66.23m

International Schools [Ireland, England, Scotland and Wales]

Morton Stadium, Dublin 1st 65.10

Celtic Games, Colwyn Bay [Wales] 3rd Aug. 1st 69.26m [PB] [CBP]

UK AAA Championship, Bedford, 1st Sept. 1st 60.40m

KERRY COLLEGES TRACK & FIELD CHAMPIONSHIPSCASTLEISLAND 1ST MAY 2013

Top Colaiste na Sceilge performers at the recent Kerry Colleges Athletic Championships held in Castleisland were Eimear o’ Donovan 2nd in Minor Girls 800m, Laura O’ Connor 2nd in Junior Girls 800m and Niall O’ Shea 2nd in Junior Boys 1500m. Also Nuno Martinez turned in a very good performance in the Junior Boys 1500m.

LIAM O’ CONNELL WINS MUNSTER TITLE

Congratulations to Liam O’ Connell on winning his first Munster Athletic Title in Nenagh on Sat. 23rd Feb. Liam won the 1500m Indoor Title and
now goes on to compete in the National Finals which will be held in the new
super indoor arena attached to Athlone I.T.

ATHLETICS

Congratulations to ADAM KING who was recently presented with a special National Award for his achievements in Hammer Throwing during 2012. The award called the Matt McGrath Award commemorates the memory of one of Ireland’s greatest Hammer throwers. He was Olympic Champion and World Record holder in 1912. This year is a very important one for Adam as he will be hoping to retain his National Titles along with gaining selection for the European youth Olympics being held in Belgium in July and the World Youth Olympics in the Ukraine also in July. He has already achieved the qualifying distances for these events.

Also congratulations to Niall O’ Shea and Liam O’Connell both of whom had outstanding performances at the recent Munster Schools Cross-Country Championships held in Waterford which gained them qualification for the All-Ireland Finals in the University of Ulster Jordanstown on Sat. 9th March.

Niall also won the 5Km Road Race held in Portmagee on Sun. 17th Feb.

ALL-IRELAND SCHOOLS CHAMPIONS

ADAM KING winner of the All-Ireland Schools U-15 Hammer Title in 2011 and U-16 Title in 2012 with throws of 56.03m and 62.30m respectively.

Cillian O’Donovan winner of the All-Ireland Schools 3000m Track Title in 2012 setting a time of 8min. 54 secs.

Munster Schools Cross-Country Finals

The Munster Schools Cross-Country Finals were held over a very testing course at Waterford I.T. Sports Complex on thurs. 7th Feb. Both Niall O’Shea and Liam O’Connell turned in outstanding performances to quality for the All Ireland Finals in Jordanstown near Belfast on Sat 9th March.

Niall ran a real blinder to finish 9th in the Junior Boys race while Liam finished very strongly to take 12th place in the Senior event. In the Minor Girls race Eimear O’Donovan was very unfortunate not to qualify as she was just pipped on the line for the final qualifying place while Laura O’Connor performed well in the Junior Girls race.

KERRY COLLEGES CROSS-COUNTRY

Seventeen athletes from Colaiste na Sceilge travelled to Killarney on Fri. 18thJan for the Kerry Colleges Cross-Country Championships and we saw them produce a number of excellent individual performances. In the Junior Girls race Laura O’Connor had a great 2nd while Niall O’Shea was equally impressive with his 2nd place in the Junior Boys event with Oisin Moran also having a fine run to finish in 6th place. In the Intermediate Grade Cathal O’Donovan was very competitive throughout the race to eventually finish 4th while Ciara Sugrue produced her best ever individual performance to take 6th place.

JUNIOR GIRLS 2ND LAURA O’ CONNOR

JUNIOR BOYS 2ND NIALL O’ SHEA

JUNIOR BOYS 6TH OISIN MORAN

JUNIOR BOYS 13TH JIM SUGRUE

INTERMEDIATE BOYS 4TH CATHAL O’ DONOVAN

INTERMEDIATE GIRLS 6TH CIARA SUGRUE

SOUTH MUNSTER SCHOOLS CROSS-COUNTRY

Colaiste na Sceilge athletes braved the extreme weather conditions to compete in the South Munster Schools Cross-Country Championships held in CIT [Cork] on Fri. 25th Jan. The underfoot conditions were as extreme as one could ever witness at a cross-country event. Competitors were either running through rivers of water or seas of mud, with conditions getting worse as the hundreds of athletes in each race made the course into a pure mud bath.

Despite the conditions all the Colaiste na Sceilge participants turned in heroic performances especially Laura O’Connor and Niall O’Shea who both finished 5th in their respective Junior Girls and Junior Boys races.

Eimear O’Donovan was another to show tremendous grit and determination when finishing 7th in the Minor Girls event while her brother Cillian, having his first race after a long layoff due to injury was 6th in the Senior Boys race and in the Intermediate Boys event another of the O’Donovan family Cathal had a fine run when finishing 13th . All those that finished in the top 15 have now qualified for the Munster Finals at the same venue in two weeks time.

SOUTH MUNSTER SCHOOLS CROSS-COUNTRY

MINOR GIRLS 7TH EIMEAR O’ DONOVAN

JUNIOR GIRLS 5TH LAURA O’ CONNOR

JUNIOR BOYS 5TH NIALL O’ SHEA

SENIOR BOYS 6th CILLIAN O’ DOVOVAN

INTER. BOYS 13TH CATHAL O’ DONOVAN

THE FIRST 15 IN EACH RACE QUALIFY FOR THE MUNSTER FINALS WHICH WILL BE HELD IN CORK ON THURSDAY 7TH FEB.

Niall O’Shea, Stephen O’Connor and Ciáran Clifford pictured with Irish OlympicRobert Heffernan at the Munster Cross-Country Championships in Waterford. Heffernan matched strides with the best walkers in the world to finish an excellent 4th at the London Olympics.

Munster cross Country

Coláiste na Sceilge cross-country athletes turned in some fine performances at the Munster Championships held in WIT Waterford last weekend (11/11/2012). In the Boys U-15 race Cathal O’Donovan was our top finisher with an excellent 5th place and he was closely followed by Niall O’Shea in 8th position which with the support of Ciaran Clifford (39th) and Stephen O’Connor (54th) gave the team 6th place overall in the Inter Club-Section and 3rd place in the Inter-County section.

In the Boys U-17 race Cillian O’Donovan returned from injury to finish 10th while Liam O’Connell came home in 17th place. A mistake in the lap count probably cost both athletes a number of places as the runners were ushered into the finishing tunnel with still 1 lap to go which resulted in a far from satisfactory outcome.

Cathal, Niall and Cillian have now qualified for the All-Ireland Championships in Adamstown Co. Wexford on 9th December.

Coláiste na Sceilge athletes were in top form over the summer months, particularly Adam King and Cillian O’Donovan, both of whom turned in some outstanding performances. Adam who specialises in the Hammer Throw won Munster and All-Ireland Intermediate Colleges Titles along with National U16 Titles, smashing long standing records in the latter age group. He also gained selection on the Irish Schools Team for the home countries International in Kent where he finished an excellent 2nd, being beaten by just a few centimeters. In his final event of the summer, he finished a close 3rd in the British Open Championships. Considering that Adam will be under-age for most of these events again next year, it really shows what a promising talent he is.

Cillian was also in outstanding form over the summer months, establishing himself as the top U-17 3000m athlete in the country. Having won the Munster Colleges Title he progressed to the All Ireland Championships in Tullamore, where over the final two laps of the race he showed a clean pair of heels to the opposition to score an emphatic win to take his first Colleges Track Title. He also won the National U-17 A.A.I. 3000m Title and like Adam was also selected for the Schools International in Kent where he finished an excellent 5th. Cillian’s next event will be the International Mountain Running Championship in Cumbria on 22nd September where he will compete in the U-16 age group. He will be joined on this trip by 2012 Leaving Certificate Brigid Dennehy who competes in the U-18 section. We wish them both the best of luck in this very challenging event which involves continuous uphill running to over 500 metres elevation.

Liam O’Connell was also in good form over the holiday period finishing a very good 3rd in the county 1500m championship and just missed out by a fraction for the Bronze Medal in the Munster Steeplechase Championship which would have qualified him for the All-Ireland championships.

Brian Sugrue also showed up well in High Jump competions. He finished 3rd in the County Junior Championship with a personal best of 1.78 meters and took silver medal in County Community Games Finals.

ATHLETIC SUCCESS DETAILS FOR SUMMER OF 2012

ADAM KING. (HAMMER THROW)

Munster Colleges 1st

All Ireland Colleges 1st

All Ireland U-16 1st, Record

Munster U16 1st, Record.

Tailteann Games 2nd

International Schools 2nd

British AAA Open Championshion 3rd

CILLIAN O’DONOVAN

Munster U-17 3000M 1st

Munster U-17 1500 M 2nd

All-Ireland Colleges 3000M 1st P.B.

All-Ireland Colleges AAI U-17 3000M 1st.

Tailteann Games 3000M 2nd

International Schools 3000M 5th

Liam O’Connell

Kerry Championship 3000M, 4th

Munster Championship 2000M Steeplechase, 4th.

Brian Sugrue (High Jump)

Kerry Junior Championship 3rd 1.78 metres

Kerry Community Games 2nd.

Munster Colleges Athletics.

Congratulations to Adam King and Cillian O’Donovan on their recent Munster Colleges Athletic Successes.

Adam won the Intermediate Boys Hammer Title while Cillian won the 3000m title and was also 3rd in the 1500m race while Liam O’Connell was 6th in the 3000m.

Adam and Cillian now go forward to the All-Ireland Championships in Tullamore on Sat 2nd June. Best of luck to them.

Athletic Success for Coláiste na Sceilge Students

At the South Munster Colleges track and field championships held in Cork on Friday last May 11th. Cillian O’Donovan had a good win in the Intermediate Boys 1500M. While Adam King was a clear cut winner of the hammer title. Other students to do well were Liam O’ Connell (4th in the 1500M) and Brian Sugrue (4th in the high jump).

At the Kerry Co. Championships held in Castleisland on Sunday May 13th both Adam and Cillian were again successful in the Hammer and 1500M. While Liam was 3rd in the 1500M. In the Junior mens (U-19) High Jump competition Brian Sugrue put in a great effort to secure 3rd place, setting a new personal best of 1.78 M which was a massive improvement of 8 cm on his previous best.

Super Run by Brigid Dennehy

On Saturday last (March 10th) the cream of Irish athletic talent was gathered at St. Mary’s College Galway for the 2012 Aviva All-Ireland Colleges Cross-Country Championships.

With seven qualifiers Coláiste na Sceilge was well represented and indeed got off to a great start in the Minor Boys event, when Niall O’Shea had a fantastic run to finish 28th in a field of well over 100 runners. Next up was the junior Boys race and here Cathal O’Donovan ran impressively to finish 32nd again from a very large field.

The Intermediate Boys team of Cillian O’Donovan, Liam O’Connell, Brian Sugrue and Andy Quigley were hopeful of getting close to a team medal but despite a big effort they failed to make the podium in this highly competitive age group.

The Final Coláiste na Sceilge participant was Brigid Dennehy in the Senior Girls race and what a super performance we saw from Brigid. Having Finished 3rd in Munster a top 12 finish would be considered excellent but right from the start it was evident that her sights were set much higher. After a breakaway group of four had gone over 30 meters clear, Brigid led the chasing group and with some brilliant running joined the leaders and maintained a top six position until the closing stages when she was just edged out of a podium position in 7th place. This gave her the honor of being the 1st Munster finisher, with the Munster Champion back in 18th position and it was also the best ever result from a South kerry girl in the event.

Brian Sugrue produced a top class performance to tie for 1st place in the Munster Colleges Indoor High Jump Championship held in Nenagh on Tue 6th March. Brian Jumped 1.65 meters having previously set a personal best of 1.70 meters at the same venue just a few days earlier.

Munster Indoor Championships

Brigid Dennehy was the top Coláiste na Sceilge performer at the Munster Indoor Championships held in Nenagh last weekend (March 3 & 4th), winning the Gold Medal in the Girls U-19 1500 meters.

Others to perform well were Cillian O’Donovan who finished 2nd in the Boys U-17 1500 meters and Brian Sugrue who achieved a personal best height of 1.7 meters in the High Jump U-17 to take the Bronze medal. Cathal O’Donovan also turned in a good performance for 5th place in the U-15 800 meters.

Munster Cross Country

At the recent Munster Cross Country Championships held at the Cork Instiute of Technology Grounds, Coláiste na sceilge was well represented with 16 students participating, seven of whom qualified for the All-Ireland Championships being held in Galway on the 10th March 2012.

Top performer was Cillian O’Donovan who had an excellent run and finished 2nd in the Boys Intermediate (U-17) race while in the Senior Girls event Brigid Dennehy also gave an oustanding Performance in winning a Bronze medal, having matched strides with the leaders throughout the race.

In the Minor Boys (U-14) race Niall O’Shea made great headway in the final stages to finish an excellent 8th while Cathal O’Donovan and Liam O’Connell also turned in very impressive performances in finishing 10th in the junior Boys and Intermediate Boys respectively.

The team sections saw the Intermediate Boys win Silver medals and the Junior Boys finished 4th while the Junior Girls were 9th. All those that finished in the top twelve along with the Intermediate Boys team have now qualified for the All Ireland in Galway on 10th March where the top eight finishers in the Junior and Intermediate events will be selected on the Irish Schools Team for the Schools International being held in England.